Does RaeLynn have ‘The Voice?’

Baytown’s country sweetheart is emerging as one of the most buzzed-about contestants on ‘The Voice.’ But not always in a good way.

RaeLynn, the show’s youngest singer at 17 and a member of Blake Shelton’s team, was voted into the show’s next rounds during Tuesday’s results. She let loose an expletive (that wasn’t picked up by a microphone) before bouncing with delight. The shocked look on her face was likely shared by more than a few viewers.

Increasingly heated comments on my results blog suggest not everyone is on board with Shelton’s decision.

“Is everyone deaf? RaeLynn is horrible!” reads a post from Elaine. “I’m all for the “hey, she’s from Baytown” stuff, but seriously? The majority of the people on Twitter want her GONE!”

Others agree, calling her “the worst pick to move forward in this season or last” and accusing her of butchering Maroon 5’s ‘Wake Up Call’ during Monday’s live show.

Houston and Texas rally behind their own. But let’s be fair. RaeLynn isn’t the best singer on the show. She’s had off moments and is outmatched by more experienced contestants. She’s also outdone by 16-year-old powerhouse Jessica Sanchez on that other singing show. (But who isn’t, really?)

Still, it’s easy to see why she’s still around. She has a unique vocal style, a defined image and an adorable personality. Her ‘Hell on Heels’ blind audition showed a lot of promise and earned chair spins from Shelton and Adam Levine. (I would have turned around, too.)

At best, RaeLynn combines the best of two of the genre’s biggest stars. Take the wide-eyed sweetness of Taylor Swift, the fiery streak of Miranda Lambert, top with a bit of Texas charm.

The much-ballyhooed battle with Adley Stump could have gone either way. Stump was technically stronger, and RaeLynn was visibly nervous and breathy. But by this time, it was about more than, despite the show name, the voice. Our Baytown girl has “it,” that indescribable factor, that Stump does not. (And someone please pull that girl out of the ’80s.)

Monday’s performance of ‘Wake Up Call’ seems to be the flashpoint, but not necessarily because of the vocals. People seem to be taking issue with a 17-year-old singing about finding another woman in bed with her boyfriend and having to “shoot her dead.”

For what it’s worth, Shelton seems to be enamored. Maybe it’s because RaeLynn reminds him a bit of his wife. But I don’t think that’s all of it. Monday’s performance was fiery, fun and — most importantly — memorable. Good or bad, it stuck in people’s minds.

16 Responses

I’ll admit I’m biased because I can’t stand country music. The growling drawl is like fingernails on a chalkboard to me. I compare her to Skylar on “that other show.” Skylar doesn’t bug me quite AS much because the accent she sings with is the same way she speaks. RaeLynne’s is an over-exaggerated affectation. She almost feels like a country caricature to me. And yeah, her bopping around the stage to “Wake Up Call” struck me as awkward.

But, obviously, a lot of people love her. Different strokes for different folks and whatnot.

The much-ballyhooed battle with Adley Stump could have gone either way. Stump was technically stronger, and RaeLynn was visibly nervous and breathy. But by this time, it was about more than, despite the show name, the voice. Our Baytown girl has “it,” that indescribable factor, that Stump does not.

I honestly wonder if you heard a different performance than my wife and I did. The instant she started singing the first lines of “Free Fallin'”, she was painfully off-key. We continued listening, and Adley’s vocals were on-pitch and powerful. When RaeLynn started back up, she was again off-key and breathy. At that point we had heard enough and fast-forwarded through the performance. Our jaws literally dropped when we saw Blake choose RaeLynn.

Being off-key is understandable when you’re jumping on stage in a karaoke club. When you’re doing a professional performance after several days of practice and coaching, it’s absolutely inexcusable. The show is about finding “the Voice”, not the “soon to be but not quite yet the Voice”. She has a cuteness and down-home charm that will aid her in her overall presence, but when it comes to an “it” factor as a singer, her singing is the most important and overrides everything else. On that front, she’s not ready yet and should not have gotten this far.

RayLynn’s voice is different & her look is definantly bankable. The bottom line is usually the winning factor. Who can bring in the Bigger Buck$ overall. I think Blake looked @ the whole picture and said RayLynn would be easier to market she brings in the country vote & the tween vote as well as the guy vote. She’s a doll! That’s my take on it –

Country people vote for her because she’s country. Tweens vote for her because she’s a tween. People who listen carefully to her singing will cast votes elsewhere. Hard to believe she has made it this far…and according to her (expletive) reaction, she doesn’t really understand it either.

Raelynn is young and has the it factor on many levels. She doesnt get the sentamental vote for obious reasons but I thought her last performance was pure awesome. I can go to any local church and find someone that can sing on key but bore me to death. Rae will sell records and at the end of the day she has a large fan base since there was only one contestant yesterday that had a higher itunes ranking out of 12 that performed. American Idol has proven that American doesnt always vote for people that will sell records so no matter if she wins or is out next round I think she has the best shot of anyone having a real career. Rae you keep doing your thing and dont listen to idiots eating potato chips and bon bons.

I grew up around this family, so I am biased, but she’s a little doll and could easily fill the Nashville “Justin Beiber” gap. The bottom line here is whether the country music industry thinks they can make money with her or not. I’m thinking she is already there, regardless if she continues on the show or not. Anyway, I thought her song and presentation the other night was awesome.

You really think Country people vote for her bc she’s country , or that teenagers vote for her bc she’s a teenager!
I take offense to that bc I love country, and I am a teenager, but I CAN’T STAND that sqeaky nails on a chalk board, over exaggerated fake accent, voice of hers. Adley should have won HANDS DOWN!!!!! The ONLY reason Raelynn is still on the show is bc Blake has her soooo rapped around his little finger, It’s disgusting!!!!! She’s probably a producers daughter!!!

Ok, RaeLynn (Rachael) lives in my town, and she DOES NOT have that accent,she talks normally, and shes from my town and shes making us seem like a hick town. I dont know her personally, but through friends, and i try really hard to like her but i cant seem to make myself,even if she is from my town, sorry.